Here's what one league insider had to say about Makoto Hasegawa, the Akita Northern Happinets' veteran point guard/playing manager in a May 2011 interview.

Hasegawa will turn 42 in April.

"He (Hasegawa) can't run or defend anyone, can't make shots when he's tired, but still thinks he's the best player and going to help win the game," the observer pointed out. "He's also the boss, so he subs himself in and out. And as much as Akita fans know about basketball, they have blinders on when they watch 'Sam Cassell' hobble up and down the court, and get burned repeatedly on defense."

Through Saturday, there are currently five winless teams in the bj-league: the expansion Gunma Crane Thunders (0-5), the Kyoto Hannaryz (0-4), Niigata Albirex BB (0-3), the Osaka Evessa (0-3), and the Rizing Fukuoka (0-3).

Gunma is a brand new team, so it has no history of failure or success. The other four were all playoff teams last season, and Kyoto reached the Final Four.

And the Hannaryz, for instance, opted not to bring back Rick Rickert, Lance Allred, Lee Cummard and Naoto Nakamura, all solid veterans. So, in a way, the team was rebuilding from scratch.

The other three teams all are in various ways getting accustomed to new players as well.

Sure, it's a long season -- 52 regular-season games for each team -- but having continuity is one hallmark of success from season to season. Very few general managers and front-office staffs in this league make a real commitment to continuity.

Four teams with one win apiece -- the Sendai 89ers (1-4), the Chiba Jets (1-2), the Saitama Broncos (1-2) and the Miyazaki Shining Suns (1-2) -- made major changes in the offseason.